• Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • A view of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    A view of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • Charred pipework sits on a processing unit at Saudi Aramco's Khurais oil field plant. Bloomberg
    Charred pipework sits on a processing unit at Saudi Aramco's Khurais oil field plant. Bloomberg
  • Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • A damaged pipeline is seen at Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    A damaged pipeline is seen at Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • A damaged pipeline is seen at Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
    A damaged pipeline is seen at Saudi Aramco oil facility in Khurais. Reuters
  • Holes caused by fragments of a missile are seen in a damaged pipe in the Aramco's Khurais oil field. AP Photo
    Holes caused by fragments of a missile are seen in a damaged pipe in the Aramco's Khurais oil field. AP Photo
  • Workers fix a new section pipeline in Khurais. Reuters
    Workers fix a new section pipeline in Khurais. Reuters
  • Workers at Aramco's oil processing facility in Khurais, near Dammam. AP Photo
    Workers at Aramco's oil processing facility in Khurais, near Dammam. AP Photo
  • View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
    View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
  • View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
    View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
  • View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
    View of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
  • Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
    Workers are seen at the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
  • Employees work in Abqaiq oil processing plant. AFP
    Employees work in Abqaiq oil processing plant. AFP
  • Employees work in Abqaiq oil processing plant. AFP
    Employees work in Abqaiq oil processing plant. AFP
  • A general view of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters
    A general view of the damaged site of Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq. Reuters

Saudi Aramco head: attacks may continue without international action


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Attacks on Saudi petrochemical facilities could continue unless there is a concerted international response, Saudi Aramco's chief executive Amin Nasser said on Wednesday.

In September, a combined drone and missile attack on oil processing facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais in eastern Saudi Arabia caused oil prices to increase by 20 per cent and knocked out over 5 per cent of global supply.

"An absence of international resolve to take concrete action may embolden the attackers and indeed put the world's energy security at greater risk," Mr Nasser said at the Oil & Money conference in London.

Saudi state oil company Aramco's CEO Amin Nasser said a lack of concrete action would embolden the attackers and put the world's energy security at risk. AFP
Saudi state oil company Aramco's CEO Amin Nasser said a lack of concrete action would embolden the attackers and put the world's energy security at risk. AFP

He said that Aramco, the state-owned oil company, was on track to regain its maximum oil production capacity of 12 million barrels per day by the end of November following the September 14 attack.

The chief executive of Aramco's trading unit said at the start of October that the company had restored oil production to pre-attack levels of 9.7 million barrels per day.

But he also said that they would need to increase this number to rebuild strategic reserves used during the crisis to keep the flow of exports steady.

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the September attacks but Saudi Arabia and the United States ruled out their involvement, and instead blamed Iran.

Last month, the kingdom's military showed remnants of the weapons used that it  said showed clear Iranian involvement.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman described the incident as an "act of war" by Iran but stressed that it should be treated as a political matter rather than a military one.

He too warned the international community of further incidents unless the world takes strong action to deter Tehran.